devices, systems, and methods for enhancing raman spectroscopy and hyper-raman are disclosed. A molecular analysis device for performing raman spectroscopy comprises a substrate and a laser source disposed on the substrate. The laser source may be configured for emanating a laser radiation, which may irradiate an analyte disposed on a raman enhancement structure. The raman enhancement structure may be disposed on the substrate or apart from the substrate. The molecular analysis device also include a radiation receiver disposed on the substrate and configured for receiving a raman scattered radiation, which may be generated by the irradiation of the analyte and raman enhancement structure.
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12. A method of performing raman spectroscopy, comprising:
generating a laser radiation from a laser source disposed on a substrate;
disposing an analyte over at least a portion of a raman enhancement structure;
irradiating the analyte and the raman enhancement structure with the laser radiation to generate a raman scattered radiation; and
sensing at least two unique wavelengths of the raman scattered radiation with at least two wavelength-specific sensors disposed on the substrate.
1. A molecular analysis device, comprising:
a substrate;
a laser source disposed on the substrate, the laser source configured for irradiating an analyte disposed on a raman enhancement structure with a laser radiation to produce a raman scattered radiation; and
a radiation receiver disposed on the substrate and comprising at least two wavelength-specific radiation sensors, wherein the radiation receiver is configured for sensing at least two unique wavelengths of the raman scattered radiation, and each wavelength-specific sensor is configured for sensing one of the at least two unique wavelengths of the raman scattered radiation.
6. A molecular analysis device, comprising:
a substrate;
a laser source disposed on the substrate the laser source configured for irradiating an analyte disposed on a raman enhancement structure with a laser radiation to produce a raman scattered radiation; and
a radiation receiver disposed on the substrate and comprising at least two radiation sensors, wherein the radiation receiver is configured for sensing at least two unique wavelengths of the raman scattered radiation, wherein the raman enhancement structure is disposed on the substrate and the raman enhancement structure is configured to be irradiated by the laser radiation and to produce raman scattered radiation receivable by the radiation receiver.
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The present application is related to concurrently filed U.S. patent application Ser. No. (200500097) entitled MONOLITHIC SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ENHANCED RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY, and concurrently filed U. S. patent application Ser. No. (200402383) entitled INTEGRATED SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TRANSVERSAL ENHANCED RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY.
The present invention relates to chemical analysis using Raman spectroscopy. More particularly, the present invention relates to integrated systems for enhancement of Raman spectroscopy combining a radiation source and Raman scattered radiation sensing. In addition, the present invention relates to hyper-Raman, where the excitation wavelength is approximately an integer multiple of the Raman wavelength.
Raman Spectroscopy is a well-known spectroscopic technique for performing chemical analysis in the gas, liquid or solid phase. In conventional Raman Spectroscopy, high intensity monochromatic light from a light source, such as a laser, is directed onto an analyte to be chemically analyzed. The analyte may contain a single species of molecules or mixtures of different molecules. Furthermore, Raman Spectroscopy may be performed on a number of different molecular configurations, such as organic and inorganic molecules in crystalline or amorphous states.
For a system that does not have surface or nanostructure enhancement, the majority of the incident photons of the light are elastically scattered by the analyte molecule. In other words, the scattered photons have the same frequency, and thus the same energy, as the photons that were incident on the analyte. This is known as Rayleigh scattering. However, a small fraction of the photons (i.e., 1 in 107 photons) are inelastically scattered by the unenhanced analyte molecule at a different optical frequency than the incident photons. The inelastically scattered photons are termed the “Raman scattered radiation” and may be scattered at frequencies greater than, but most are usually scattered at a frequency lower than, the frequency of the incident photons. When the incident photons collide with the molecules and give up some of their energy, the Raman scattered photons emerge with a lower energy and thus at a lower frequency. The lower energy Raman scattered photons are commonly referred to in Raman spectroscopy as the “Stokes radiation.” A small fraction of the molecules are already in an energetically excited state and when the incident photons collide with the molecules, the Raman scattered photons emerge at a higher energy and thus at a higher frequency. The higher energy Raman scattered photons are commonly referred to in Raman spectroscopy as the “anti-Stokes radiation.” Raman scattering can occur from the rotational, vibrational, or electronic states of the molecules.
The Stokes and the anti-Stokes Raman scattered photons are collected using optics, the different frequencies are dispersed spatially with some type of spectrometer, and the photons are registered by a detector, such as a photomultiplier, resulting in a spectral graph of intensity at a corresponding frequency (i.e., proportional to energy) for the Raman scattered photons. By plotting the intensity of the inelastically scattered Raman photons against frequency, a unique Raman spectrum, which corresponds to the particular analyte molecules, is obtained. This Raman spectrum may be used to identify chemical species, as well as other physical properties of the analyte. While conventional Raman Spectroscopy is suitable for bulk chemical analysis, it is not effective for surface studies because the signal from the bulk Raman scattered photons overwhelms any signal from Raman scattered photons near the surface.
In hyper-Raman spectroscopy, when excitation radiation impinges on an analyte molecule, a very small number of photons may be scattered at frequencies corresponding to the higher order harmonics of the excitation radiation, such as the second and third harmonics (i.e., twice or three times the frequency of the excitation radiation). Some of these photons may be Raman scattered photons with a frequency that is Raman-shifted relative to the frequencies corresponding to the higher order harmonics of the excitation radiation. Therefore, in Hyper-Raman spectroscopy, the incident excitation photons have approximately ½, ⅓, or ¼ the frequency of the Raman photons.
Due to the deficiencies with performing surface studies using conventional Raman Spectroscopy, another Raman Spectroscopy technique called Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS), which is effective for performing surface studies, has been developed. In SERS, a monolayer or sub-monolayer amount of the molecules to be analyzed is adsorbed onto a specially roughened metal surface. Typically, the metal surface is made from gold, silver, copper, lithium, sodium, or potassium. Raman spectroscopy has also been used employing metallic nanoparticles or nanowires for the metal surface, as opposed to a roughened metallic surface, which is hereinafter referred to as Nano-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (NERS). The intensity of the Raman scattered photons from a collection of molecules adsorbed on such a surface is typically about 104-106 greater than conventional Raman Spectroscopy from a similar number of molecules in a bulk specimen, and can be as high as 108-1014 for a single molecule adsorbed near two or more metal nanoparticles. Although not thoroughly understood, the selectivity of the surface Raman signal results from the presence of surface enhancement mechanisms and is mainly attributed to two primary mechanisms: electromagnetic enhancement and chemical enhancement, with the electromagnetic enhancement being the dominant mechanism. The enhanced electromagnetic field is highly dependent on the surface roughness features of the enhancement surface. The chemical enhancement is believed to be dependent on the altered electronic structure of the enhancement surface due to adsorption of the analyte. The enhanced electromagnetic field of the enhancement surface, which is adjacent to the analyte, irradiates the analyte, producing an enhanced Raman signal having a strength that is, in part, proportional to the square of the enhanced electromagnetic field. Thus, Raman spectroscopy may be used to study monolayers of materials adsorbed on metals, and even single molecules adsorbed near an appropriate metal nanostructure.
In a conventional Raman spectroscopy system, a spectrometer collects all radiation, including the Stokes radiation, anti-Stokes radiation, and the elastically scattered radiation, and provides a spectrum of the scattered radiation. The spectrum may then be used to identify the chemical species, as well as other physical properties, of the analyte. Conventionally, the spectrometer may include various optical elements such as lenses, gratings, photomultipliers, and filters. While this arrangement may be flexible, it is often bulky, expensive, and requires significant user interaction to analyze a chemical species.
An integrated modular Raman spectroscopy analysis system, which integrates a laser light source and a scattered radiation dispersing and detection element, may be a smaller and less costly system. This integrated Raman spectroscopy analysis system may be easier to use and may be adaptable to detection of a predetermined set of molecules. In addition, an integrated Raman spectroscopy analysis system may integrate the Raman scattering enhancement structure (surface or nanostructure), creating a self-contained integrated Raman spectroscopy analysis system.
The present invention, in a number of embodiments, includes devices for generating Raman scattered radiation, Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) systems, Nano-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) systems, and methods of performing SERS and NERS.
In one aspect of the present invention, a molecular analysis device comprises a substrate and a laser source disposed on the substrate. The laser source is configured for emanating a laser radiation, which may irradiate an analyte disposed on a Raman enhancement structure. The molecular analysis device also includes a radiation receiver disposed on the substrate. The radiation receiver is configured for sensing at least two unique wavelengths of the Raman scattered radiation, which may be generated by the irradiation of the analyte and Raman enhancement structure.
Other embodiments of the present invention include methods for performing Raman spectroscopy. One method of performing Raman spectroscopy comprises generating laser radiation from a laser source disposed on a substrate, disposing an analyte over at least a portion of a Raman enhancement structure, and irradiating the analyte and the Raman enhancement structure with the laser radiation to generate Raman scattered radiation. The method further includes sensing at least two unique wavelengths of the Raman scattered radiation with at least two wavelength-specific sensors disposed on the substrate.
In yet another embodiment, a method of performing Raman spectroscopy comprises generating a laser radiation from a laser source disposed on a substrate, disposing an analyte over at least a portion of a Raman enhancement structure, and irradiating the analyte and the Raman enhancement structure with the laser radiation to generate a Raman scattered radiation. The method further includes dispersing the Raman scattered radiation into at least two unique wavelengths and sensing the at least two unique wavelengths with at least two sensors disposed on the substrate.
While the specification concludes with claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming that which is regarded as the present invention, the advantages of this invention can be more readily ascertained from the following description of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
The present invention, in a number of embodiments, includes structures and devices for use in Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) systems, Nano-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (NERS) systems, and methods of performing SERS and NERS. Systems that may incorporate SERS and NERS techniques are generally referred to as employing Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (ERS). As shown in the figures and described in further detail below, molecular analysis structures and molecular analysis devices of the present invention incorporate a laser source with a radiation receiver on a substrate. In some embodiments, a Raman enhancement structure may be disposed on the substrate, while in other embodiments the Raman enhancement structure may be separate from the molecular analysis device. In addition, the sensitivity of Raman spectroscopy systems of the present invention may be enhanced by the type of surface on the Raman enhancement structure to enable more accurate and sensitive detection of chemical species and other physical properties of the sample being analyzed, including single molecule detection. Furthermore, the Raman spectroscopy systems of the present invention may be employed as an analytical instrument for detecting specific chemicals.
Similarly,
The Raman enhancement structure 300, whether disposed on the substrate 110 or as a separate component, may be used to effect the electromagnetic enhancement of the Raman signal, chemical enhancement of the Raman signal, or both. If disposed on the substrate 110, Raman enhancement structure 300 may be associated with substrate 110 by chemically bonding or merely disposing the same on the substrate 110, followed by weak bonding thereto or, alternatively, no bonding at all.
As used herein, the term “Raman enhancement structure” means any structure configured and formed of a material that may produce chemical enhancement of the Raman signal, electromagnetic enhancement of the Raman signal, or both. Exemplary materials for formation of the Raman enhancement structure 300 include gold, silver, copper, aluminum, chromium, lithium, sodium, potassium, or any other suitable material that may produce chemical enhancement of the Raman signal, electromagnetic enhancement of the Raman signal, or both.
It has been shown that a relatively rough surface enhances the amount of Raman scattered radiation 160 that may emanate from the Raman enhancement structure 300 when an analyte 310 disposed on the Raman enhancement structure 300 is irradiated. As a result, the Raman enhancement structure 300 may be formed as a single monolithic layer, possibly with a roughened surface, or the Raman enhancement structure 300 may comprise one or more discrete particles.
As one or more discrete particles, the Raman enhancement structure 300 may have a variety of exemplary configurations, such as, nanowires (e.g., a rod shaped configuration), nanodots, nanoparticles (including employing a single nanoparticle), or metallic particles in a colloidal suspension. It is currently preferred to employ at least two silver nanoparticles spaced apart, such that an analyte 310 molecule may be draped therebetween. The aforementioned nanostructures for the Raman enhancement structure 300 may be formed by chemical vapor deposition (CVD), molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), atomic layer deposition (ALD), or any other known technique for depositing the Raman enhancement structure 300.
The substrate 110 may be any suitable substrate 110 for bearing the laser source 120, the radiation receiver 200, and, if present, the Raman enhancement structure 300. In addition, if optional substrate 110 components are present, the substrate 110 may be selected for its properties of directing and modifying either optical signals, electrical signals, or both optical signals and electrical signals. By way of example, conventional silicon substrates as well as Group III-V materials, such as gallium arsenide, and indium phosphide may be desirable. In addition, the substrate 110 may be a circuit board using a material, such as, for example, FR4 circuit board material.
It may be desirable to include other optional substrate components 190 to create an enhanced Raman spectroscopy analysis system. By way of example, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, and discrete components may be useful. In addition, optical components such as collimators, lenses, filters, waveguides and resonant cavities may be useful. Furthermore, nanowire-type sensor arrays may be desirable for verifying the presence and composition of some analytes 310.
The laser source 120 may be a conventional laser diode, which emits a laser radiation 125 with a wavelength that is effective for Raman spectroscopy analysis. By way of example, an edge-emitting laser diode is illustrated in the exemplary embodiments. However, it is understood that other laser diode implementations are possible and encompassed by the scope of the invention, such as, for example, a Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL).
The radiation receiver 200 may be implemented as a plurality of wavelength-specific sensors 210 or may be implemented as a wavelength demultiplexer 240 with radiation sensors 290.
An exemplary radiation receiver 200′ implemented as a plurality of wavelength-specific sensors 210 is illustrated in
The Raman spectrum may be used to determine specific analytes 310. In this fashion, an inexpensive molecular analysis device 100C may be developed to detect a predetermined set of analytes 310. Other molecular analysis devices 100C may include wavelength-specific sensors 210 tuned to other frequencies for detecting a different set of analytes 310.
The wavelength-specific sensors 210 may be, for example, a plurality of Resonant Cavity Enhanced (RCE) photodiodes. An exemplary RCE photodiode 210 is shown in
In a conventional RCE photodiode 210 configuration, one of either the top reflector 222 or the bottom reflector 212 is doped with a p-type material and the other mirror is doped with an n-type-material. This doping creates a diode such that the absorption of photons by the active material in the active region 226 is converted to electrons and an electrical current proportional to the intensity of the radiation received by the RCE photodiode 210. This electrical current may be directed to other optional substrate components 190 or may be directed to electrical components apart from the molecular analysis device 100C for further analysis.
The top reflector 222 and bottom reflector 212 may be structures, such as, for example, distributed Bragg reflectors (also referred to as Bragg Mirrors) or distributed Bragg gratings.
For example, the bottom Bragg reflector 212 may be doped to create an n-type material and the top Bragg reflector 222 may be doped to create a p-type material. The resulting structure may conventionally be referred to as a P-I-N diode. In this example, the bottom Bragg reflector 212 may be connected to a ground voltage potential, while the top Bragg reflector 222 may be connected to a signal for carrying the generated electrical current.
Bragg reflectors may be formed in a number of ways using a variety of materials configured as alternating layers; one layer with a low refractive index and the other layer with a high refractive index. Each layer can be configured with a thickness of about one quarter of an odd multiple of the specific wavelength to be resonantly trapped by the RCE photodiode 210. For example, the layers may be configured with a thickness of ¼ of a wavelength or ¾ of a wavelength. The resulting Bragg reflector may also be referred to as a quarter-wave stack. As an example, a Bragg reflector may be formed from alternating layers of GaAs (gallium arsenide) and AlGaAs (aluminum gallium arsenide). Another suitable material combination for forming Bragg reflectors includes alternating layers formed respectively from silicon and silicon dioxide. Implementing a larger number of alternating pairs in a Bragg reflector results in a higher refractive index. About thirty layers may create a reflectivity as high as 99.99%. In a conventional RCE photodiode 210, the bottom reflector 212 may have a very high reflectivity. The top reflector 222 conventionally has a lower reflectivity to allow radiation to enter the resonant cavity while also reflecting a large percentage of the radiation back inside the resonant cavity once inside.
As shown in
Rather than using wavelength-specific sensors 210, another embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in
If desired, optical amplifiers 275 may be implemented in the transmission waveguides 270 to amplify the unique wavelengths 260 since simple photodiodes may not have the resonant enhancement characteristics of RCE photodiodes 210.
Exemplary embodiments of a wavelength demultiplexer 240 include an Arrayed Waveguide Grating (AWG) element 240′ (
Another exemplary wavelength demultiplexer 240, illustrated in
In addition to a conventional periodic arrangement of columns 254 forming the photonic crystal 240″, a photonic crystal 240″ may be formed with a “chirped” arrangement. As a chirped photonic crystal 240″, the periodicity (i.e. spacing between columns 254) changes along the chirped axis 256. This chirping is useful in creating wavelength-specific waveguides 258″.
As shown in
In operation of a Raman spectroscopy system, and referring to
If used for hyper-Raman spectroscopy, when excitation radiation impinges on an analyte molecule, a small number of photons may be scattered at frequencies corresponding to the higher order harmonics of the excitation radiation, such as the second and third harmonics (i.e., twice or three times the frequency of the excitation radiation). Some of these photons may be Raman scattered photons with a frequency that is Raman-shifted relative to the frequencies corresponding to the higher order harmonics of the excitation radiation. Therefore, in hyper-Raman spectroscopy, as examples and not limitations of higher order harmonics, the incident excitation photons may have approximately ½, ⅓, or ¼, the frequency of the Raman photons.
This hyper-Raman excitation has the added advantage that the excitation frequency and Rayleigh scattered radiation at the excitation frequency may be easily filtered out from the Raman signal frequency by an inexpensive optical filter 170. In this invention, we define ERS to include Raman, hyper-Raman and higher multiple excitation photons.
For illustration of a specific example, and not a limitation, the excitation photon may have a wavelength of about 980 nm, and the Raman signal may have wavelengths of about 490 nm. As a result, the filter 170 may be configured to substantially filter out the radiation at and near the 980 nm wavelength, while passing the shorter wavelengths. Alternatively photodiodes comprising GaN/InGaN/AlGaN, which are transparent to 980 nm but detect frequencies near 490 nm may be used.
Some of the Raman scattered radiation 160 may be detected by the radiation receiver 200. With a wavelength-specific sensor 210 embodiment (
The electrical signals from either embodiment may be directed to electronic equipment located apart from the molecular analysis device 100 (i.e., devices 100A, 100B, 100C, or 100D) or may be directed to other optional substrate components 190 for development of a Raman spectrum, which may be used to identify a specific analyte 310.
Although the foregoing description contains many specifics, these are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention, but merely as providing certain exemplary embodiments. Similarly, other embodiments of the invention may be devised which do not depart from the spirit or scope of the present invention. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated and limited only by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the foregoing description. All additions, deletions, and modifications to the invention, as disclosed herein, which fall within the meaning and scope of the claims, are encompassed by the present invention.
Li, Zhiyong, Williams, R. Stanley, Wu, Wei, Wang, Shih-Yuan, Islam, M. Saif
| Patent | Priority | Assignee | Title |
| 10361323, | Nov 23 2013 | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd. | Backside-illuminated photodetector structure and method of making the same |
| 10510909, | Nov 22 2013 | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd. | Backside-illuminated photodetector structure and method of making the same |
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